Consistent attendance and engagement in synchronous class sessions, whether online or in-person, are vital. Missed synchronous classes may result in a reduced ability to implement the teaching methods covered in course content and may lead to lower grades on associated coursework, including classroom observations. Students should make their best efforts to attend and actively engage in all classes.

Relay excuses absences only when they are related to extreme circumstances outside of students’ control (e.g., religious holiday, death in the family, being under the supervision of a doctor for illness or injury, maternity leave, military responsibilities, jury duty). In such cases, students should contact their class professors directly notifying them of the absence.

Relay does not grant excused absences for school-specific conflicts.

Occasionally, a synchronous class session includes an on-demand “in-person” assessment, completed during the class session. If a student is absent for a class session that includes an in-person assessment, students have one week from the due date to review class materials and submit the assessment on Canvas. After one week, the missing assessment score of zero will stand. 

Students who demonstrate persistent absence—failure to attend synchronous online class sessions and/or to complete asynchronous online coursework and actively engage in coursework for 30 consecutive days—are subject to an administrative withdrawal. Once these students are identified by faculty members, the Registrar’s Office will contact these students to determine their intention to remain enrolled and provide necessary support. Students who continue to demonstrate persistent absence after they have been contacted may be administratively withdrawn from Relay. See Persistent Absence policy for additional details.